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Healing through Somatic Wisdom

Embodied Life is a boutique wellness space offering trauma healing modalities focused on building intimate relationships and genuine connection.

We help you learn to embrace the textures and richness of life by teaching the skills needed for creating deeper relationships. While traditional therapy, yoga classes, and self-help books can provide valuable guidance for healing the body and mind, our focus goes beyond connecting you with your inner self. We focus on learning how all of the inner work you do translates into success in your life. We want to aid you in transforming your relationships and how you experience intimacy, find genuine connection, and heal the barriers of separateness. We aim to inspire your ability to heal, evolve and welcome the parts of yourself that have been estranged. 

We use Somatic Therapy and Touch Therapy, as well as group sessions (such as restorative yoga or group presencing) to guide our clients on a healing journey that aligns with where you’re at in life.

  • Trauma is not what happens to us, but what we hold inside in the absence of an empathetic witness

    Peter Levine

  • Energy is intelligence in action; life is movement. When your nervous system is well-regulated and synchronized, you're able to participate in life, to be passionate about your work, to relate deeply and skillfully with others, and even to grow and change after traumatizing experiences.

    Thomas Hübl

  • The work of the mature human being is to hold grief in one hand and gratitude in the other, and to be stretched wide by both.

    Francis Weller

  • If the world is to be healed through human efforts, I am convinced it will be by ordinary people, people whose love for this life is even greater than their fear.

    Joanna Macy

Rachel is a compassionate somatic trauma therapist dedicated to guiding individuals through their healing journeys using touch, mystical principles, and grief work. With a background in massage therapy, she combines a deep understanding of trauma-informed care with a holistic approach that honours the mind, body, and spirit.

Drawing on years of experience, Rachel employs gentle, mindful touch techniques to help clients release stored trauma and reconnect with their bodies. Her approach recognizes the profound impact of trauma and grief on both emotional and physical well-being, providing a safe space for clients to digest their feelings and navigate their unique processes of life.

Incorporating mystical principles, Rachel integrates practices such as mindfulness, heartfulness and body-fulness breathwork, and presencing to foster a deeper connection to Self, life and others. This spiritual dimension enriches the healing experience, empowering clients to find meaning and strength amid their struggles.

With a commitment to creating a nurturing and non-judgmental environment, Rachel works collaboratively with clients, guiding them to embrace their emotions, honour their experiences, and cultivate resilience. Her goal is to support individuals in transforming trauma and grief into pathways for growth and renewal.

Join Rachel on this transformative journey toward wholeness, and discover the healing power of somatic therapy infused with touch, spirituality, and compassionate support.

Trauma Healing Skills

Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner

Somatic Touch Skills w/ Kathy L. Kain

Somatic Narrative w/ Kathy L. Kain

Transforming the Experience-Based Brain w/ Stephen Terrell

NARM (Neuro Affective Relational Model) Practitioner™

NeuroAffective Touch® ~ Embodied Philosophy

Advanced Strategies for Healing Sexual Trauma w/ Ariel Giarretto

The Transformative Power of Eros w/ Dr. Peter Levine & Kimberly Johnson

Racialized Trauma ~ The Cultural Somatics Training & Institute w/ Resmaa Menakem

Manual Therapies / Body Work / Movement

Massage Therapy Diploma ~ Sutherland and Chan Massage Therapy School

Thai Massage level 1, 2, 3 ~ Thai Massage Toronto

Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner year 1 ~ Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine Academy

E-RYT Yoga Teacher Training 200 hr w/ Kathryn Beet ~ Yoga Space Toronto

Restorative Teacher Training w/ Hali Schwartz

Sexuality

Institute for the Study of Somatic Sex Education, level 1

Sacred Sexuality, Quodouska level 1, 2, 3

Red Tent , Magdalene Facilitator Training Level 1 w/ Tanishka Moon Woman

Advanced Strategies for Healing Sexual Trauma w/ Ariel Giarretto

Other  

Breathwork Facilitator Training ~ Alchemy of Breath

Gestalt Psychotherapy, year 1, 2 ~ The Gestalt Institute of Toronto

Certified Hypnotist ~ National Guild of Hypnotists

Mindfulness Mentor w/ Tara Brach & Jack Kornfield

Practice Group Leader in Thomas Hübl’s Transparent Communication

Anti-Oppression, Anti-Racism and Decolonization Trainings

Before We Were White, Ancestral Recovery for Collective Liberation ~ White Awake

Somatic Abolitionism ~ the Cultural Somatics Training & Institute w/ Resma Menakem

Racialized Trauma ~ The Cultural Somatics Training & Institute w/ Resmaa Menakem

Ancestral Healing w/ Thomas Hübl

Cultivating presence through co-regulation and nervous system awareness.

At the heart of Embodied Life is the desire for connection.

When you come to 1:1 therapy or take part in group exercises, you’re doing the work to re-connect to yourself and other people. This united energy is what elevates our capacity to work with life's ups and downs. It dismantles the armour that our experiences taught us were necessary to have built around us, and allows us to find a way to live not just in the world, but be with the world. We hold space for our clients to undertake this exploration and heal from the experiences that have kept them isolated.

Testimonials

  • My experience with Rachel at Embodied Life has been truly amazing. She is wise and intuitive. She creates a space where I feel I can show up, be myself, and name my needs, which she responds to with helpful care. I was in a really rough place, physically and emotionally, when I showed up 8 months ago and was desperate to see what somatic therapy could do for me. I feel like the care that Rachel has offered has been a critical piece in my healing and is a major part of why I’m now thriving. This is true so much so that in sharing my experience at Embodied Life with my employers, they offered to pay for a number of sessions as they saw the positive change in me and how it has helped me flourish in my own care-providing work.

    S.C.

  • I walked into Embodied Life looking for a new massage therapist in the neighbourhood… little did I know I was about to embark on a transformative journey. I have been doing a lot of inner work and healing…. But the moment I met Rachel it was apparent to me that I am literally at the tip of the iceberg! It is only the beginning of my journey with her, but I am already captured by her healing touch, and new perspective! Definitely recommend to anyone who is curious to find the route cause of the physical pain they are experiencing…. Which is a transformative experience in every aspect of your life! Rachel is truly an expert in her field …and best of all she keeps it real! Now go get healed!

    K.S.

  • Rachel is a kind, knowledgable and supportive healer/therapist/educator. My experiences working with her personally and professionally over the past 11 years have been exceptionally positive. I learn much from her and I have experienced her healing work as profound. As a somatic therapist, a yoga teacher and a massage therapist, I do not hesitate to say that Rachel is among the very best. The aesthetic space is a reflection of the depth of care she puts into everything she does. As a yoga teacher/therapist and the owner of a 27 year old Toronto yoga studio myself, I do not make these comments lightly.

    K.B.

  • I have just completed 5 sessions with Rachel (and will continue), and I am seeing so much internal progress towards true embodiment that it’s hard to even explain in writing. Rachel’s somatic therapy work is so unique and truly transformative! I am feeling more aligned with myself and walking in a sense of trust, ease and peace that I have only started feeling while working with Rachel. TRUST THE PROCESS is all I have to say, HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

    E.S.

  • In my initial consult with Rachel, my body told me she is the practitioner for me. Even though it was just a consultation, Rachel related to me with so much care, centeredness and honesty, that I immediately felt safe. It was refreshing, comforting and hopeful all at the same time. I was debating leaving the city for a bit but she is one major reason that I have stayed. Ever since then, my journey with her has been an extension of those sensations. We worked every week to build safety within my body, practice being present in the now, listening to my body, amplifying the sliver of goodness buried under an ocean of trauma within my body, all without exchanging too many words. I have gone from saying "the" body to consciously owning it as "my" body. I am more centered, confident and assertive with my needs. Allowing and accepting where I am unapologetically. I felt my insides strengthening ever so slightly every week!

    S.T.

  • Rachel has taught me to ask for more, make something "even better" instead of settling for "good" without shame and without being attached to getting it every time. She has helped me begin my journey from head to body. My work with her has been extremely respectful, safe, consensual and truly co-creative. I have learned the value of my own voice and consent in places I didn't think it was necessary. My work with her is not done yet, but I have achieved a significant milestone in being able to function. I have huge respect for somatic work. It is rare to find people who truly know how to hold space in silence. Rachel is a gift for her clients and I am so grateful that she chose to serve the world with her magic!

    S.T.